By Ifham Nizam Industry associations, academics and writers expressed concern over the long-term consequences of making books more expensive for the masses. All stakeholders stressed that they would go all out to bring justice to the book lovers and the industry, at a media briefing held at the SLFI on February 2. Accordingly, Sri Lanka’s […]

President Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday called on all Sri Lankans at home and abroad to contribute their utmost to rebuilding the nation.In a message to mark the 76th Independence Day the President said: “As we commemorated the 75th year of our nation’s independence, we encountered the indignity of being labelled a financially bankrupt country. Nevertheless, upon […]

Monday 5th February, 2024 Another ‘Independence Day’ has come and gone. Hours of pomp and circumstance complete with thunderous cannon fire were over and the sobering reality was dawning on Sri Lankans as this comment was written yesterday. Independence Day celebrations are replete with irony; beaming from ear to ear and singing the national anthem […]

From Pakistan to India, activists warn of tendency to throttle the net as elections near MADURAI, India — New legislation to regulate online content in Sri Lanka has renewed concern over freedom of expression ahead of expected elections. It also highlights a growing habit of restricting the internet across South Asia, from India to Pakistan. […]

Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena says Sri Lanka is celebrating Independence Day at a time when the country is slowly returning to the right path of progress after facing an unprecedented economic crisis.

The latest salvo against the government’s imposition of value-added tax (VAT) on hitherto exempted sectors came on Friday from the country’s book industry which has called for an immediate reversal of the decision to tax the sale of books at 18%. Associations representing local publishers, printers, booksellers and importers and writers and academics came together […]

ECONOMYNEXT –An Indian firm is in the process of getting permission to manage Sri Lanka’s three airports including the main Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) where the there is an over saturation in foreign tourists, Tourism Minister Harin Fernando said. The island nation is expecting 2.2 million tourists for 2024, but the main airport needs capacity […]

State Minister of Foreign Affairs Taraka Balasuriya, speaking at a press briefing  titled ‘Collective Path to a Stable Country,’ held at the President Media Centre (PMC) today (01) defended  the President’s recent foreign trips and dismissed claims that the trips were unnecessary by emphasizing their importance in strengthening Sri Lanka’s foreign relations and securing new […]

Secretary to the Treasury and Finance Ministry Mahinda Siriwardana has said that even if Sri Lanka achieves the goal of zero corruption, tax revenue will still have to be increased to bridge the budget deficit and lessen the country’s debt burden. Referring to the Supreme Court ruling pertaining to economic management delivered on Nov 14, […]

Thursday 1st February, 2024 Dr. Laksiri Fernando has, in his column published on the opposite page today, reminded us that the Voters’ Day of Sri Lanka falls on 01 Feb. The Election Commission (EC) conducts special programmes on this day to educate voters on matters such as the basic qualifications required for registration, and the […]